Lindsey Graham drops out of GOP race for 2016

Republican party Presidential hopeful, Senator Lindsey Graham is ending his presidential campaign. “I’m going to suspend my campaign. I’m not going to suspend my desire to help the country,” the South Carolina senator said in a wide-ranging and candid discussion in which he acknowledged: “I’ve hit a wall here.” according to the BBC, he made the official announcement in an email to supporters and Youtube video posted Monday morning. Graham is known for his quick wit and famous for his one-liners but he was sober, serious and emotional as he described his decision to leave the race just weeks before the voting begins.

Graham still wants to be heard

“Here’s what I predict. I think the nominee of our party is going to adopt my plan when it comes time to articulate how to destroy ISIL,” he said. “We’ve fallen short here, but the fight continues. To those who are doing the fighting, I want to be your voice. To those in the Republican Party who want to win, check my plan out. Hillary, if you get to be President, I’ll help you where I can. I hope you’re not. But if you are, I’ll be there to help you win a war we can’t afford to lose.” Graham campaign has been struggling to make impact, and is at less than one percent in national polls, and, in the most recent CNN/ORC national poll, he barely registered. He failed to even qualify for the undercard round in the Fox Business debate in November. He said, “While we have run a campaign that has made a real difference, I have concluded this is not my time.”

Survival of the fittest

It is not clear if any of the remaining GOP candidates will also throw in the towel towards the 2016 race, or who Lindsey Graham might support. “At the end of the day, I’m not going to be competitive in my state,” he said. “I’m not going to be competitive outside my state.” Asked who he would endorse by the CNN, Graham demurred. “I’m going to take some time with my family. Going to think about what I should do. I have no intention of endorsing anyone right now.” Later, he said that if he were to endorse, he’s looking for the candidate best fit to be Commander-in-Chief and also who can win.